New camcorder?

[WolfAir]

Hey all,
Same as the title really, what is a good video camera nowadays for all the weddings, road trips, random home movies of the kids and whatever else I can find use for. My old one, a Sony mini dv handycam, was my first ever purchase with my wages from my first job back in 2002/3. I always regretted not getting the add on flash light for those low light conditions.
Anyway I have a budget of around £600 and I plan on keeping it a long time as my first one.
I see a few are wifi enabled and have a projector built in. What about memory? Is that built in or do I have to buy external memory cards?
These are a few I have seen, any advice would be great..
http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/Cam...
http://www.jessops.com/online.store/categories/Cam...
http://www.currys.co.uk/gbuk/cameras-and-camcorder...

If anyone has anything better in mind feel free to post your suggestions

[Murph7355]

Ages ago I had a Sony and it was great...but tbh even the small ones are a faff to carry around...and phone cameras now are so good for the vast majority of uses, especially the really spontaneous stuff, that I wouldn't bother.

[WolfAir]

Murph7355 said:

Ages ago I had a Sony and it was great...but tbh even the small ones are a faff to carry around...and phone cameras now are so good for the vast majority of uses, especially the really spontaneous stuff, that I wouldn't bother.

Yes the mobile camera is amazing for catching your eldest (3) pulling some crazy stunts whilst still in his nappy , but not the family get togethers or relaxing sunny weekends having water fights in the garden and all that we can watch 20 years from now. That's what you need a camcorder for.. so you can embarrass your kids haha

[b2hbm]

Whatever you get, I'd suggest you go for one with an old fashioned viewfinder rather than the fold out screen that most of the cheaper ones seem to have these days. I went from an old Sony DV camera to a cheap (£200 ?) JVC one a couple of years ago, and whilst the quality is superb, transferring from card is much quicker than DV tape but capturing fast moving action is hit and miss.

It's fine indoors or on dull days but in full sunlight it's hard to see the screen. I end up twisting it around to get a viewing angle which is ok, but if you're trying to follow any fast moving object and keep it in frame then it's impractical. For example I tried to take footage of a Spitfire flypast this weekend; I got the start as it came in, lost it completely and then got it flying away..... I'm now in the market for another camera !

[seyre1972]

Why not just get a GoPro but with a stabilised gimbal ?

Or a dedicated 4K camera/DSLR. (Most serious photographers/videos use the DSLR's these days as they can do photo/video)

I bought one of these while out in the US and it will do everything a camcorder can do.

Gimbal

[Murph7355]

WolfAir said:

Yes the mobile camera is amazing for catching your eldest (3) pulling some crazy stunts whilst still in his nappy , but not the family get togethers or relaxing sunny weekends having water fights in the garden and all that we can watch 20 years from now. That's what you need a camcorder for.. so you can embarrass your kids haha

IME the stuff to embarrass my kids with is all the spontaneous stuff (running round in green pants, crocs and swim goggles and hat pushing a pink pram is currently the favourite of my 4yr old boy ).

Are you intending just setting it up pointing at the garden and letting it run?

Anyway, if I were in the market I'd definitely go Sony. Screen based viewfinders are OK, especially if you're just going to leave it running rather than going round interviewing everyone. Get one that uses standard format memory (SD, microSD, Compact Flash etc No Memory Stick ). Seriously consider an external mic' - if you're using it outdoors the onboard mic's are usually best at picking up wind noise. Make sure you get one that does at least HD. I don;t see 4k being a real necessity at present and just chews up more storage. Check battery life will suit your usage pattern.

I still wager it'll end up in a drawer unused after a month or two

[RVVUNM]

I gave up on my Sony camcorder as it was to much of a faff to carry both that and a camera. I now use a Panasonic TZ 70 Camera both jobs. Superb quality and colour well recommended.

[TheRainMaker]

b2hbm said:

Whatever you get, I'd suggest you go for one with an old fashioned viewfinder rather than the fold out screen that most of the cheaper ones seem to have these days. I went from an old Sony DV camera to a cheap (£200 ?) JVC one a couple of years ago, and whilst the quality is superb, transferring from card is much quicker than DV tape but capturing fast moving action is hit and miss.

It's fine indoors or on dull days but in full sunlight it's hard to see the screen. I end up twisting it around to get a viewing angle which is ok, but if you're trying to follow any fast moving object and keep it in frame then it's impractical. For example I tried to take footage of a Spitfire flypast this weekend; I got the start as it came in, lost it completely and then got it flying away..... I'm now in the market for another camera !

Before you bin it, look for a screen shade.

http://www.wexphotographic.com/buy-sachtler-bags-m...

Or similar

[Zod]

Not sure why you'd bother buying a camcorder. I've bought two in the last ten years, an HD Hi8 tape Sony when my first was born and an HD hard drive Panasonic when the third was born in 2011. I've hardly used the Panasonic, because iPhone video improved so quickly and I got a GoPro in 2013. It's also much easier to deal with the output from iPhones and GoPros on a computer.

[TheRainMaker]

seyre1972 said:

Why not just get a GoPro but with a stabilised gimbal ?

Because they are poop as camcorders.

Rubbish sound
No stabilisation
No Focus
No Zoom
Rubbish in low light
No grip

A £600 camcorder will be in a different league to a go pro (or any other action cam for that matter)

[TheRainMaker]

Zod said:

It's also much easier to deal with the output from iPhones and GoPros on a computer.

It's exactly the same work flow with camcorders/ DLSRs these days, they all use the same SD cards, until you get up to the expensive stuff anyway.